


Whumptober Day 7 - Isolation

by TexdoesHalo



Series: Whumptober - 2019 [7]
Category: Borderlands (Video Games)
Genre: Angel is mentioned briefly, Depression, Give this mans some love Rhysie, Guilt, He wants to go back and change it all but he can't, Isolation, Jack really needs a hug, M/M, Regret, Same with Lilith, Self-Hatred, Sobbing, Whumptober 2019
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-08
Updated: 2019-10-08
Packaged: 2020-11-27 15:57:16
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 983
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20951045
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TexdoesHalo/pseuds/TexdoesHalo
Summary: Jack was so utterly terrified of that nothingness he begged on his knees. So, was it crueler to kill him or trap him in that void?Years of isolation can break a man, or an AI





	Whumptober Day 7 - Isolation

A split second of utter panic, a yanked cord, a flash of blue, and it was over. Jack had lost. The ruins of his office were replaced by endless dark, an empty void. It was everything he had feared.

_No…no no nonono NO! Please!! Rhysie _please_ let me out! I’m sorry! **Please!!!**_

Jack screamed, but it made no sound, he was trapped. Trapped in a soundless, sightless….nothingness… He wanted to hit something, but there was nothing to hit. He wanted to yell and rage, but he couldn’t speak. 

He wanted…he wanted…he wanted to go back.

He wanted to go back and change it all. To never threaten Rhys or take control, to never bring out the endoskeleton, to fix things. He wanted to fix everything. Go back even further than Rhys maybe, make peace with the Vault Hunters instead of attacking them, keep Angel safe without a cage and wires, not airlock those scientists…

Save his wife…

But he couldn’t do a damn thing. Nothing at all. Because there was nothing, nothing but the dark and his thoughts. For once he wished he didn’t talk so much, cause now his thoughts were making up for his inability to talk, the void wasn’t silent, not really. 

Not with his damn brain…

Eventually his brain drifted back to Rhys. Oh Rhys… A better man than he ever could’ve been. The kid had gone through so much, yet he never wavered from his beliefs, his ideals, he refused to give up on his friends, or to give them up. Even when they betrayed them, he still found it in him to forgive and move on. Maybe not forget, but still, he managed to never hold a grudge. No matter what they did.

Something Jack had never mastered…

He hadn’t been lying when he told Rhys he was proud of him. The kid had impressed him, his determination rivaling Jack’s own. Though he guessed that at that point Rhys wouldn’t’ve appreciated that comparison…

Man he really fucked this one up didn’t he?

How long would he float like this? Isolated in the dark, alone with the void, with the pain, the loss, the regret, the guilt, the…the…everything.

Lilith was right…he was a monster.

Monsters like him deserved to be punished right? Was this his punishment? His version of hell? Good. He hoped Rhys never plugged him back in. He didn’t…

He didn’t want to ruin anymore lives..

…………..

……………….

Those last moments ran through his head again and again and again. He went through every option he could’ve taken, everything he could’ve said but didn’t. The 3 words he should’ve uttered..

Now he would never get to.

He thought he was hallucinating when he heard the voice. Could AIs even hallucinate? It didn’t matter, because next thing he knew light was flooding the dark. It had been so long…this…this couldn’t be real. But it was.

That voice…he knew it…but…from where?

White light morphed into vague shapes, and those into something the AI could recognize. Boxes? A desk? Computers? Where was he?

“It…it worked…”

There was that voice again. He could figure out where it was coming from now, right behind hi-

No. No it couldn’t be.

Jack had turned so fast he swore he would’ve gotten whiplash if he wasn’t a hologram. It felt like he did though, he couldn’t make sense of what he was seeing.

Rhys…Rhys was standing before him. Except, he looked…Different. 

His weird striped shirt had been replaced by a simple black button-up, the top ones undone to show off inked blue skin that Jack had never seen before. The kid had replaced his arm too, the new one a sleek silver chrome instead of the boxy yellow old one. 

And his eye. It was gold now.

“R….Rhys?”

The kid-no, no he wasn’t a kid anymore. Not after everything…everything Jack had put him through. Regardless, Rhys smiled softly and stepped forward, reaching out to gently cup Jack’s ja-

Wait. Wait that shouldn’t be possible. Rhys’ hand should be slipping through him. He was just a-

He…he wasn’t a hologram. 

Jack lifted his new hands, wiggling the fingers in awe as Rhys’ thumb brushed over his very, very real cheekbone. “How..” Jack gasped, lifting his eyes to Rhys’, “H-how is this happening? Why-why am I back? I shouldn’t be back. You shouldn’t….you should’ve….”

Rhys’ hand…it was so warm against his skin…

Jerking back, Jack shook his head in confusion, “You should’ve left me there. I don’t-I don’t deserve to be back.. Th-the dark…it’s where…it’s where monsters belong…”

Shudders wracked his body, broad shoulders slumping as he curled in on himself, stifling weak sobs with a hand, “It’s where I belong….” Tears fell to the floor, was he crying? He hadn’t shed real tears since….since Angel. New knees met hard metal, Jack’s legs buckling, the memory of Angel’s death pushing him over the edge into a chasm of despair. He was drowning, sinking in a sea of pain and guilt.

Then a life-vest was thrown over his head.

Strong arms wrapped tight around him, pulling Jack into a warm, safe embrace. Gentle fingers carded through his hair, a velvet voice whispering soft words of comfort in his ear. 

“It’s okay…It’s okay, Jack. I’m here. You’re not alone anymore.”

Sobbing openly, Jack buried his face into Rhys’ chest, hands fisting in the young man’s shirt for desperate support. “I-I-I’m sor-r-ry, Rh-hys…” He gasped for breath, choking on his tears and pulling back just enough to look up at Rhys.

“I-I’m s-so sor-rry…”

That calm smile returned, mismatched eyes boring into Jack’s, but he didn’t feel threatened, he felt… Safe. Lips brushed against his skin, that smile taking on new meaning as Rhys lifted his chin with a gentle touch, 

“I love you too, Jack.”

**Author's Note:**

> God this was fun and painful to write at the same time. I hope y'all enjoyed it!
> 
> Kudos and comments are loved and cherished as always


End file.
